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2 Francs
| Issuer | Banque de la Guyane |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Red on blue-green underprint. The Banque de la Guyane monogram is centered within a guilloche vignette, with the numeral 2 repeated in each of the four corners. Two signature varieties are known for this issue. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | 2 |
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| Comments |
The Banque de la Guyane's small-denomination emergency notes of 1917 were a direct response to wartime coin shortages — metal was needed for the front, and French Guiana's remote economy ground down to near barter without small change. These notes effectively served as token substitutes, issued under emergency provisions that briefly allowed colonial banks to fill the gap left by the disappearing coinage.
B. Arnaud of Villeurbanne was a regional printer, not one of the major Parisian security houses, which shows in the relatively modest production values of the series. Pick 6 is considerably scarcer than the 1 Franc companion note from the same issue.